Livingston 12 Haddington 32

A HAT-TRICK from winger Kyle Adams secured victory for Haddington over a stubborn Livingston side at Almond Park on Saturday.

He crossed once in the first half, and added two more tries late on as a late flurry sealed victory over the league's basement side.

Kyle Hamilton and Jack Hamilton also scored, while Gareth Pritchard added seven points from the tee.

Adams was in scoring action in the first minute, as he burst clear from kick-off, beating the Livi defenders to touch down (0-5).

Both sides struggled for the remainder of the half, with neither able to dominate proceedings and mistakes aplenty.

Despite being down to 14 men with Adams sent to the sin bin for a high tackle, the Reds held out, and turned round five points to the good.

Soon after the restart, Livi levelled as their prop powered over, and the successful conversion put the hosts in front.

With Haddington facing a third consecutive defeat at Almond Park, they rallied late on, with former North Berwick centre Hamilton providing the finish to a break by Connor Munro to restore their lead.

Adams bagged his second moments later after another good team move, before Jack Hamilton's long-distance effort wrapped up the bonus point.

A fifth try followed, as Adams beat a host of Livi defenders on his way to his hat-trick try.

Head coach Thomas told Courier Sport: "We needed a win to keep in touch with the front runners, and we achieved that in what was a scrappy game.

"Scoring straight from the kick-off should have helped us to settle into things but we tried to force it too much and Livingston defended well.

"We were able to cut loose in the last 15 minutes, and we scored some great tries to secure the win, and a vital bonus point.

"The break [for the Autumn Tests] should allow some of the injured players time to recover and we can prepare for the next part of the season."

Meanwhile, the club's 2nd XV beat Lasswade 20-15, thanks to a try from Ally Stewart and five penalties from Alex Ferguson.

Haddington: J Ferguson, K Adams, K Hamilton, L Clutton, A Durkin, G Pritchard, J Hamilton; M Dunlop, K Munro, G Cockburn, Q Caulfield, H Hamilton, A Cunningham, J Riddell, M Renton